Obama Ad: McCain Protecting CEOs' Bermuda Tax Shelter

Hitting on economic and pocketbook themes, Barack Obama is out with a new ad today accusing John McCain of supporting tax breaks for businesses that operate in the shelter of Bermuda.

"It's more than just a vacation destination for John McCain," the ad says of the island. "McCain went to Bermuda... and while he was there pledged to protect tax breaks for American corporations that hide their profits offshore. And grateful insurance company executives and their lobbyists who benefit from the tax scheme gave McCain $50,000. John McCain. He took a vacation, and so much more. And we get more of the same."

The spot, titled "Destination," is replete with shots of the beautiful beach coast and island music. But the message is driven home more by the news that surrounds the ad's release -- mainly, the crumbling economic situation that has voters worried about jobs, economics, and budgets. The evidence that McCain actually supports keeping Bermuda open as a tax shelter for business is an article from The Royal Gazette, the island's paper, which reported that the Arizona Republican "pledged to protect Bermuda's international businesses if he is successful in his White House bid."

There are few, if any, additional articles indicating McCain's support for Bermuda's tax shelter status.

UPDATE: McCain's camp responds...

"Barack Obama's ad cleverly ignores two key facts: his own campaign headquarters is provided by a company based in Bermuda, and is guilty of the very same off-shore benefits he's attacking. Whether he is opposing additional oil drilling while decrying high gas prices or blasting earmarks despite his requests for a billion dollars in pork barrel spending for his home state, Barack Obama has a stronger record of hypocrisy than he does making change in Washington." ---Tucker Bounds, spokesman McCain-Palin 2008